Authorities in Bangladesh say hundreds of fishermen are still missing after the violent storms that swept through the Bay of Bengal Tuesday.
Precise figures are hard to come by. Government officials told the French news agency Sunday that nearly 1,800 people are not accounted for. But another official told Reuters news agency that 1,700 fishermen are missing from the Barguna district alone.
Accounts of the known death toll vary widely. An official count Sunday was 37 dead. But press reports in Bangladesh say more than 100 bodies have been recovered.
Returning fishermen say they saw numerous bodies floating in the sea.
Government officials say high waves and strong winds are hampering rescue and recovery operations.
They say navy rescuers continue to search for possible survivors, including the commander of a naval vessel who disappeared in the storm.
The storm also killed scores of people in coastal regions of eastern India.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.